


Untie Me

by alexandra__spamilton



Category: Jarchie, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-23
Packaged: 2019-09-23 20:14:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17086997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexandra__spamilton/pseuds/alexandra__spamilton
Summary: Archie can't stay out of trouble and Jughead can't get Archie off his mind.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> SEASON THREE SPOILERS EVEN THOUGH IT'S AU!!!

“Archie, I swear, you can’t go five minutes without being kidnapped,” Jughead sighed.  
“Jug, what can go wrong? It’s a family farm in a quiet town. I’m tired of running, I just need to sit still for a night.”  
The pair hadn’t been on the farm long enough to leave so much as a footprint when a young girl met them with a rifle in hand. “You’re trespassing,” she said. She had a bloodthirsty gleam in her eyes and Jughead’s stomach leapt to his throat. “I just got Archie back,” he thought as the pair slowly dropped their bags to the dusty ground and turned around, arms up in surrender. “This can’t be happening.”  
“Who are you?” Asked a second girl. This one was older, stunning--Archie’s type--Jughead thought.  
“I’m Cal,” Jughead lied before motioning to Archie. “This is Biff. We’re from Centerville.”  
The second girl crossed her arms, sizing them up. “I don’t like liars. Shoot ‘em, Gracie.”  
As Gracie raised her gun to shoot, Archie came forward. “Wait! Wait, we got robbed on the train. They took all our money, we’ve been walking for days. Just… we’re looking for some food and some water and we’ll be on our way.”  
The second girl, whose name was Laurie Lake, told her sister Gracie to put the gun down. Gracie complied, but it was clear that she didn’t trust these handsome strangers. Nevertheless, Laurie offers them stew and over dinner, it becomes clear to Jughead that Laurie is attracted to Biff. He doesn’t blame her, he’s been attracted to Archie for as long as he can remember. She offers to let the boys spend the night in the barn if they repay her with farm work the next day, to which Archie readily agrees, much to Jughead’s dismay. 

“Arch, something about this place doesn’t feel right.” Jughead said as the pair tried to settle into the barn for the night.  
“I dunno, Jug, it feels homey here.” Archie said as Laurie came in holding a few blankets.  
“I brought some extras… in case you get cold,” she said, handing them to Archie.  
“Thanks Laurie, Cal and I really appreciate you letting us stay here tonight,” Archie said.  
As Jughead watched his best friend flirt with a girl who had literally tried to kill both of them hours before, he became angry.  
When Laurie left, Jughead said, “What the hell Andrews? Veronica--we didn’t break you out of jail so you could get laid by a psycho stranger. You can’t handle any distractions right now.”  
“You’re one to talk, Jug.” Archie scoffed.  
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jughead asked, firmly.  
“Just that… I know you better than anyone, Jughead.”  
“I’m not following here, Arch.”  
“Never mind, Jug. Goodnight,” Archie said, laying down on his hay bales and closing his eyes.  
“Yeah, night.” Jughead said, wide awake with curiosity. Had Archie known about his feelings all along?


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> things get pretty STEAMY just a warning :)

Jughead couldn’t fall asleep. His body was aching with fatigue, but his mind was racing. He got up and walked across the barn to where Archie lay. He sat next to him. “Archie,” Jughead said.

Archie rolled over to face Jughead, smiling. “Yes?” Archie asked in reply. 

“Never mind,” Jughead said, going back to his makeshift bed. 

Archie Andrews is fucking straight, and my loner ass isn’t going to convince him otherwise, Jughead thought. I don’t fit in. Archie, on the other hand, can have anyone he fucking wants. Hell, even Betty Cooper went behind Veronica’s back to fool around with him.  
Speaking of going behind people’s backs, there was something pressing against Jughead’s back. He turned around, half expecting to see Gracie behind him with a gun.

It was Archie. “I know. Jug, that’s what I meant earlier. And before you say anything, I just want you to let me get this out.” Archie said, his back facing Jughead. “I’ve always known. I mean, the day that you came out to me, I remember seeing this hopeful look in your eyes. You used that as your first move and I was too caught up in myself to see it. But, then there was that whole thing with the road trip last summer and me bailing on you and it wasn’t until we became friends again that I realized why you had distanced yourself in the first place. And then you were with Kevin Keller and I was with Veronica off and on...and then I went to jail. You never came to visit, Jug. You just gave me a tattoo and assumed I’d be protected but, without you watching over me, I wasn’t safe. I needed you and you weren’t there for me. And I just keep fucking everything up.”  
“Shit, Andrews what’s that supposed to mean?” Jughead said. 

“I don’t deserve you, Jughead. I’m not good for you. I’m not good enough for you.” Archie’s voice broke, and Jughead could tell he was close to tears.

“Look at me, Archie Andrews,” Jughead said. Archie turned around. Looking Archie in the eyes, Jughead moved his hand to cradle Archie’s face. “Your move,” he said.  
Archie put his forehead against his best friend’s and exhaled. Jughead closed his eyes. Archie smelled like home to him, and Jughead wanted to remember this moment. Slowly, Archie kissed Jughead’s forehead. And then the tip of his nose. And finally, he kissed him. Just a gentle peck on the lips, nothing hot and heavy, but it was everything. 

“I don’t care.” Jughead said, his voice full of emotion.

“About me?” Archie asked, a terrified look on his face.

“I don’t care about the road trip, I don’t care that it took you this long to acknowledge my feelings, I don’t care about any of that. I just care about you and I know you and this isn’t real, Archie. You don’t mean this. You just want to feel less guilty about something and I’m right here. I mean yeah, any sane person who’d been wanting this to happen for years would jump at the chance to well, jump your bones, but I can’t let you do this to me. I’m not some cheerleader you can just fuck once and then forget about.”

“Jug, don’t you think I know that? When we were kids...and I would sneak out of my house to meet you in your treehouse? That was because I had nightmares any time I fell asleep and you weren’t there. You’ve always protected me. I’m not as strong as you are. I’m not as smart as you are. I’m not good enough for you.” Archie said.

“Stop, Arch. I can’t do this.”

“Why not?” Archie begged.

“I want to, believe me, I want to, but i just can’t.”

“You aren’t giving me reasons why not,” Archie said. 

“You’re not fucking gay. You aren’t in love with me. You’re scared and lonely and you want me to fix it and I’m vulnerable and fuck, screw it,” Jughead said, pulling Archie down in a passionate kiss. His lips tasted like blood and sweat, but Jughead didn’t care. He pulled Archie’s shirt off over his head and tossed it aside, running his hands over every square inch of bare chest and muscles Archie had to offer. Archie moaned and Jughead could feel himself growing harder by the second. Jughead felt Archie pull away from the kiss and opened his eyes to see a mischievous look on his face. Unzipping Jughead’s skinny jeans, Archie took Jughead’s throbbing tip in his mouth and got to work. Holy shit--Jughead thought, throwing his head back in ecstacy--Archie fucking Andrews is giving me a fucking blowjob on a fucking bale of hay. Jughead grabbed Archie by the hair and Archie moaned again, sending waves of electricity through Jughead’s body. Jughead had wanted this for so long. Archie fucking swallowed. Jughead flipped Archie onto his back and took off his pants. Jughead kissed Archie’s stomach and roughly gave him a hickey on his neck before whispering in Archie’s ear, “I want you inside of me. Now.”


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning Jughead awoke with a smile on his face, last night’s events replaying in his memory. He opened his eyes and realized he was alone. Archie was nowhere to be found. Of course last night was too good to be true. Jughead always had a tendency to drive away people that he loved. All Archie wanted was a good fuck, so it didn’t matter that he wasn’t gay because he wasn’t the one getting a dick rammed into his asshole. Jughead was having trouble breathing. His mind going a mile a minute. He was sobbing. How could he have been so stupid? He was hyperventilating. Archie’s probably flirting with that psycho bitch again. Fuck. Jughead couldn’t move. His body was aching. Where the fuck was Archie? Jughead heard someone come into the barn, but he couldn’t see who it was because his vision was blurred from the tears. A small part of Jughead hoped it was the girl with the gun. No, it was Archie. 

“Jug, what’s wrong?” Archie asked, holding Jughead in his arms. Jughead knew why he was naked, but where had Archie gone without a shirt? And why was he so sweaty? “Jug, it’s okay, I’m right here, it’s okay. Just take deep breaths. Try to match your breathing with mine.” Jughead tried to calm down so he could yell at Archie, but he couldn’t stop crying. He was broken. It took awhile but he finally calmed down enough to speak. 

“Where were you? You can’t just fuck me and then leave and not let me know where the fuck you are. I thought you just ditched me. Where’s your fucking shirt? You didn’t...with her did you? Fuck Archie, get off of me.” Jughead said, shoving Archie onto the ground. 

“Damn it, Jug. I didn’t mean to worry you like this, you just looked so peaceful I didn’t want to wake you and I had promised I’d help with the farm if she let us stay here, remember? It’s fucking hot outside and I didn’t want a farmer’s tan so i took my shirt off. And, no, I would never with her. You should’ve seen her face though, when she saw all the hickeys you gave me last night,” Archie smirked. 

“This isn’t funny. I hate feeling this way. I just know your track record with relationships isn’t the best and I’m insecure.”

“I know it’s not funny. I know that I suck. I know that I cheated on Veronica with Betty and vice versa. I know that I had an affair with a teacher. They didn’t make me feel the way I feel when we’re together, Jug. Something was missing out of all of those flings, and that thing was a dick. I’m not going to abandon you. We’re in this together.” Archie kissed Jughead softly. 

“About those hickeys,” Jughead said, his face turning red. There were at least five on Archie’s neck alone. 

“Are you kidding me?” Archie asked. “Don’t be sorry, babe. It’s fucking hot.” 

“Babe?” Jughead was surprised by this sudden pet name.

“Yeah?” Archie replied. 

“No, I mean are we doing pet names? Really?” Jughead clarified.

“If you’re okay with it, yeah,” Archie said, spooning the smaller boy. 

“Okay, just don’t call me baby. Or daddy. Mmm, you can call me King.” Jughead relaxed into Archie’s frame. 

“You are a King,” Archie said.

“I’m your King.” 

“You’re definitely my King.”

“That’s so hot,” Jughead said, feeling himself grow hard. Archie’s arms were wrapped around Jughead’s waist, and he felt it, too. 

“No,” Archie said, “that’s hot.”


	4. Chapter 4

Jughead needed some time to clear his head. He hated that Archie had to see that side of him. Vulnerability is not something that most people find attractive. Especially not someone like Archie. He got dressed and decided to take his camera into town in search of something remarkable. On his way out of the barn, he heard Laurie offer to give Archie a shave. Who does that? Yikes. Jughead heard him agree. “Red flag!” Jughead thought to himself, “ Archie, don’t let this crazy stranger near your neck with a razor!” Jughead knew Archie could definitely hold his own at this point, so he slipped out the back and headed into town. 

***

“So, Biff, I just wanted to thank you for helping move all of that hay earlier. Things have sort of piled up with my dad and brother away,” Laurie said as she ran the cold, metal razor over Archie’s jawline. 

“It’s really no problem, if there’s anything else I can do to help, just let me know,” Archie said with a smile. 

“Anything?” Laurie asked. Archie nodded. “Well there is one thing you could do,” Laurie said, moving closer, razor still in hand. She wrapped her other hand around Archie’s neck and pressed her lips onto his, deepening the kiss almost immediately. Archie kissed her back and then pushed her away. 

“Laurie, I can’t do this. There’s… someone else in my life right now, and I really like them. I’m sorry. I’m sure you’re a great girl, but I wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt,” Archie said.

“Seriously? You’re going to pick that scrawny emo mess over me?” Laurie asked, sounding hurt. 

“Yeah, I am. Jughead and I--” Archie was cut off.

“What’s a Jughead?” Laurie asked.

“Oh, shit, okay Laurie… My name isn’t really Biff, it’s Archie Andrews. My friend’s name is Jughead Jones. We’re from Riverdale and we’re on the run from a man named Hiram Lodge who is trying to have me killed.”

“Oh...well, sorry about that, I guess.” Laurie said. “Are you hungry? I could make you some more eggs?”

“Of, course, Laurie. Thank you,” Archie said.

A few minutes later, Laurie came back with a frying pan full of steaming eggs. Archie’s mouth began to water. They smelled so delicious.

That was the last thing Archie could remember before blacking out.


	5. Chapter 5

As Jughead was walking back to the barn he noticed that something was different. There was a man outside the main house. He was wearing a black suit, which was odd, because who wears fancy suits to a farm? “People with money, that’s who,” Jughead thought to himself. He took out his camera and aimed the lens at Mr. Mystery to try and get a better look. Holy shit, it was Hiram Lodge. Jughead snapped a few pictures for safekeeping and ran around to the back of the barn to check on his Archie. “Please be safe, please please please,” Jughead thought. Once inside, he saw a trail of dried blood that he hadn’t noticed before. Not a good sign. The blood trail led to Archie, who was tied up against a wooden beam. He was conscious, which was a good sign. It meant they could make a break for it. Archie’s face relaxed when he caught sight of Jughead, sending a message with his eyes that said, “Untie me.” Jughead put a finger over his lips, silently shushing Archie as he removed the gag from his lover’s mouth. It wouldn’t be safe to talk about what happened until the pair was a safe distance away. As he untied Archie, his heartbeat grew faster and faster. The suspense of what could be about to happen was almost too much for Jughead to handle, but he knew he had to keep his Archie safe. The pair ran out of the back door Jughead had grown accustomed to using, up the hill behind the main house and into an overgrown field. They didn’t stop running for hours. No amount of dehydration or aching muscles or sun poisoning was going to stop them from getting as far away from that-that monster of a man as possible. Jughead knew where they were going, and Archie followed without question. 

After a few hours of running like their lives depended on it, because well, they did, Archie collapsed onto the ground. They were still in the middle of nowhere, this was just a different nowhere than before. “Juggie, I...just...need...a...minute,” Archie panted. Jughead needed a minute, too. He sat down beside Archie and it took the pair a while before they could breathe normally again. 

Jughead spoke first, “We’re going to Toledo. We’ll stay with my mom and Jellybean.”

“It was my fault,” Archie cried out.

“Babe, what do you mean?”

“I told Laurie who we were,” Archie said, not daring to make eye contact with Jughead.

“Why the hell would you do that?” Jughead all but yelled. 

“She had a razor in her hand and I had just told her I didn’t want her to kiss me--by the way, she tried, I refused and I’m sorry--but I remembered what she said when we first got there about liars and I just… the truth spilled out of me like word vomit. And then she hit me in the back of the head with eggs? That part is a little fuzzy, honestly. And then I woke up and I could hear Hiram and I just sat there, unable to move, praying that you would come back and find me before it was too late. And you did.” 

“Arch...did you kiss her back?” Jughead asked in a small, helpless sounding voice. 

“I won’t lie to you, Jug. For a second, I did. For a second I kissed her back. And then I told her I couldn’t do what she wanted me to do with her because I care about you too much to cheat on you, Juggie.” 

Jughead got up off of the ground, held a hand out to help Archie up, and said nothing but, “Come on, we’ll be there soon.”


	6. Chapter 6

“Jughead?” asked a little girl from behind the fence at what appeared to be a car mechanic business. 

“Jellybean!” exclaimed Jughead when he recognized the girl was his little sister. She dropped what she was doing and ran into her big brother’s arms.

“Hey, Archie,” she said, not really looking away from her brother. 

“Hi, Jellybean,” Archie said, warmly. 

“Jellybean, is mom around?” Jughead asked.

“Yeah, I’ll take you to her!” Jellybean said, grabbing her big brother’s hand and leading the small group further into the shop. 

Gladys meets the gang halfway and tells Jughead that she misses him. She catches sight of Archie and smiles immediately. “So, you two finally got together, huh?”

“No, mom, we’re not together,” Jughead says harshly. “We’re on the run from a man named Hiram Lodge who is after Archie. That’s all.” 

“Well, you came to the right place, boys. Go get yourselves cleaned up. We’ll have a feast tonight, but the two of you can rest until then.” Gladys said. 

“Thanks, mom.” Jughead said, leading Archie to the top floor of the shop where his mom and Jellybean live.  
“You can shower first, if you want,” Jughead said, turning on the bathroom light and showing Archie where the towels and things were before walking away. Archie took a fast shower and then Jughead followed suit. Jughead emerged from the bathroom with a towel loosely slung around his hips. His hair was dripping in every direction. Archie couldn’t look away. He decided to break the silence.

“Jug, your mom knows you’re gay, why did you tell her that we aren’t together when she brought it up? I wouldn’t have gotten mad--”Archie’s words got caught in his throat as he watched Jughead get dressed, losing his train of thought. All he could focus on was Jughead’s body--his hips, his shoulders--every part of him was perfect.

“Andrews, I told her we weren’t together because we aren’t. You have made it so fucking clear that you can’t handle a monogamous relationship. I’m not going to let you keep hurting me like this. Would you stop staring at me like I’m a piece of meat? I’m a human being, respect that.” Jughead spat.

“Jug, where is this coming from? I want to be with you, not anyone else.”

“You say that, but if it was true, you wouldn’t have kissed her back,” Jughead said.

“She kissed me first, doesn’t that count for anything?” Archie exclaimed, jumping off of the bed and walking over to Jughead. “She offered to shave my face, I agreed. She sat on my lap and I was weirded out. Then, she put her hand around my neck and she clutched the razor in her other hand. I was afraid that she was about to strangle me and nick my veins at the same time, so yeah, I kissed her back for a split fucking second. I’m sorry, Jughead. I truly am, I never meant to hurt you, which is why I told you about it. I thought that telling you the truth would gain back some of your trust, not break us up,” Archie pleaded. 

“If you could go back and never tell me about it, would you?” Jughead asked, hoping Archie would say the right thing. 

“If it meant I still had you?” Archie asked, looking into Jughead’s eyes. “No, I wouldn’t take it back. I made a promise to you and I don’t intend on breaking it. Even if that means we aren’t going to be together anymore.”

“Okay,” Jughead said, glad Archie was being sincere. It was what he wanted him to say. “Okay, thank you.” Jughead kissed his Archie on the forehead and took him by the hand, leading him to the bed. Archie was the big spoon and everything was okay again. They were safe here, for now. Jughead closed his eyes and fell asleep, but not before hearing Archie mutter, “night love.”


	7. Chapter 7

“Well, if this is what “not together” looks like, I’d hate to walk in on the two of you actually “together”,” Gladys said upon opening the door to see her son cuddled up in the same bed as his friend Archie. Their limbs were tangled, so she couldn’t tell which body part belonged to which boy. Her son’s head was underneath a pillow and she smiled at the sight--he never could take naps in the daylight because the sun was too sunny. Jughead poked his head up as yummy smells wafted in through the open door. 

“What? Andrews, wake up there’s food.” Jughead said groggily, hitting his...Archie on the chest.

“Babe, why’d you wake me--holy shit something smells good,” Archie said, suddenly wide awake.

“Babe? All of this cuddling? Jughead Jones, did you lie to your mother? You don’t want to cross me, boy.” Gladys said with an expectant look on her face. 

“We weren’t together when you asked. We needed to sort some things out, but once we cleared things up, I forgave him for being a little slut and now we’re okay.” Jughead said. 

“Yeah, I didn’t want to kiss that psycho farm girl, but I thought she was going to kill me if I didn’t so I did and then she tried to kill me anyway.” Archie said. 

“I’m lost, but you boys can fill me in over dinner. Come on, let’s eat!” 

Archie and Jughead stuffed their faces before recounting the day’s events to Gladys. 

“Sounds like Hiram Lodge needs a taste of his own medicine,” Gladys said. 

“Mom, no. Please don’t get tangled up in his web. He’s already after Arch, and we’re dealing with it, what if he comes after you or Jellybean or Dad?”

“We can handle ourselves just fine, Juggie,” Gladys said. “We got ourselves here in one piece, didn’t we?” 

Jughead didn’t say anything. How could they have gotten here in one piece and not think to look back to check on Jughead? They left FP because they knew the situation was toxic, but they didn’t care enough to take Jughead with them. He had even asked to come here once, when things had gotten so bad at home… and his mom told him no. Jughead remembered that day perfectly. Things had started out so well--his dad was sober, his relationship with Kevin was in a really good place, he was happy--and then everything hit the wall. Sheriff Keller had decided to issue a search warrant and frame FP for Jason Blossom’s murder during the homecoming dance, which led to Jughead breaking up with Kevin. After that, he needed to get out of Riverdale so desperately that he had purchased a bus ticket to Toledo. Before getting on the bus, he’d called Gladys to let her know the good news and she refused to even let him crash on the couch. Now he just drops by with Archie and all of a sudden it’s, “Oh, you can crash in my guest room!” If she had a guest room, why hadn’t he been allowed to crash here? How could they be whole when he was so broken? “Excuse me,” Jughead said, getting up from his place at the table and heading back to the guest bedroom.

After a few minutes of letting Jughead be alone, Archie walked into the room with a glass of water and sat on the bed. He handed Jughead the water, watched as he swallowed every last drop without pausing for air, and took the empty cup back, placing it on the nightstand. 

“Shh, it’s okay, Juggie, it’s okay,” Archie tried to console Jughead but this was different from the panic attack he’d suffered earlier. Jughead’s tears were tears of sadness. Archie had heard Jughead call himself broken and worthless so many times that he knew exactly what had set this off. “You’re not alone, Jug. I’m right here. We can talk about it if you want? Or I can just hold you and tell you pretty things. Or we could...do something to take your mind off of it?” 

“I don’t like you seeing me this way,” Jughead sniffled into Archie’s warm stomach. 

“What way?” Archie asked.

“Vulnerable. Weak. You always tell me how fucking strong I am, but I’m not strong. I’m a mess.” Jughead sobbed. 

“You’re not a mess. You have your shit together, Jug. You’re the King. You knew to come here because even if we weren’t expected or fully welcome, you knew we would have somewhere safe to stay. You’re smarter than I am, too. You’re also fucking sexy.” Jughead scoffed at Archie’s remark. “Hey, you are. Stop being so harsh on yourself,” Archie said.

“I’m not sexy. Not like you. I don’t have muscles or calloused hands. I can’t sing or play guitar like you. I’m not a jock. I’m just a scrawny emo mess…” Jughead said.

“You’re not a mess. You’re incredibly sexy, Juggie. You’re effortlessly sexy. Wow, that sounded really gay--which I guess it was supposed to, sorry I’m new at this. My point is--” Jughead cut Archie off. 

“ARCHIE, just stop. I’m not sexy. Nothing about me is sexy. People always counter that with, “It’s what’s on the inside that counts,” but my inside is what I’m talking about. What you see is my outward appearance, yeah, maybe it looks nice to you, but even when I’m looking at a reflection, or a picture of myself I see someone who is inherently different. Someone who doesn’t fit in--Hell, I don’t even fit in with my family for fuck’s sake. Everybody loves to remind everyone else that different isn’t sexy. And do you know what? The Jughead that’s inside this body? He’s wired differently than the Archie that’s inside your body. I am a mess, Arch. Turn on the light and I’ll show you,” Jughead said, taking off his shirt as Archie turned on the light.


End file.
